To celebrate the completion of Christ the Redeemer’s restoration and maintenance works, the archbishop of Rio, Cardinal Orani João Tempesta, presided this Friday morning, July 11th, the religious blessing ceremony of the Monument, at Corcovado, which is in Tijuca National Park.
The work, of great technical relevance to the preservation of the important tourist spot and for the safety of visitors, was performed with the approval of the Institute of National Historical and Artistic Heritage (IPHAN), the Cone Engineering, in partnership with Pirelli, sponsoring the work.
The restoration took place in the thumbs, index and middle right hand fingers and in four points of the head. Damaged soapstone weavers have also been reformed, as well as the cathodic blanket, which is paramount for the protection of the concrete frame-reinforced steel structure of the Monument.
The great novelty is that Christ the Redeemer, from now on, is further protected against bad weather: there was an increase in the Lightning Protection System (LPS), with the expansion of grounding systems of Faraday cage to better the electrostatic shielding, and the expansion of the captors of lightning rods, which gained new height in the Monument’s head and reach down to Christ the Redeemer’s forefingers, and not just up to the thumbs.
"It's a joy seeing the Monument completely restored! And it´s wonderful to have been able to expand its system of protection against lightning, without any aesthetic change in it. Gorgeous, as always, and more secure, Christ the Redeemer is open to welcome pilgrims from all around the world with open arms", said the rector of the Sanctuary of Christ the Redeemer, father Omar Raposo.
The president of Pirelli South America, Paolo Dal Pino, attended the works’ delivery ceremony. For him, the event was especially important for also celebrating 85 years of Pirelli’s presence in the country: "The occasion is special for collaborating with the protection of one of Brazil’s greatest symbols, visited by people from all over the planet. Celebrating 85 years of presence in the country handing the Brazilian people and the world a more protected and restored Christ the Redeemer is a great pride for Pirelli”, he celebrated.
The works began earlier this year, after parts of the Monument were damaged by the lightnings that struck in December 2013 and January 2014. According to the National Institute for Space Research (INPE), Christ the Redeemer, until then, had been reached, on average, by six lightnings each year.
To complement this delivery to the Marvelous City, Pirelli shows the audience how the Christ observes everyone who passes through the Monument. The visitors, positioning themselves in a particular location, can be photographed by cameras installed on the head of the Christ (from the top of its 38 meters) and can put the picture in their own social networks.
This action was only possible by the installation of four cameras on the head of the Christ: one of them films the location, another is fired with a super zoom to frame the people, and the others work 24 hours, one facing Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas and the other facing Guanabara Bay, with the aim of showing, in real time, images of these places from the Christ’s point of view.
Those interested in participating of this action will be coordinated by promoters, providing only their Instagram for the images to appear right after on their social networks. Whoever does not have an Instagram, will be able to capture the photos on Pirelli’s hot site for this action, www.pirelli.com.br/olhardocristo, which will also be powered to the minute, by panoramic images captured by the "eye of the Christ."
Credits: ArqRio
